Hannah Montana: The Movie – Blu-ray Review

Blu-ray Reviews, Film, Reviews

Hannah_Montana_DVD

If you have a kid under the age of 14 (and who is female), you know who Hannah Montana is and you have had August 18, 2009 circled on your calendar for awhile now. That date is of course the day in which Hannah Montana: The Movie made it’s arrival on home video. Even if are childless and over the age of 21, you probably have at least heard of the Hannah Montana craziness.

For those that don’t know, Hannah Montana is a teenage pop star and the secret alter-ego of young Miley Stewart (Miley Cyrus). She gets to be both a normal, carefree teenager and adored famous pop star at the same time, with the help of a blonde wig that supposedly hides her true identity. In the movie, Miley’s father, Robby Ray Stewart (Billy Ray Cyrus) decides that Miley’s ego is getting too big after she has a fight over a pair of shoes with supermodel Tyra Banks (playing herself), and ruins the sweet sixteen birthday party prepared for her best friend, Lily (Emily Osment). Robby Ray decides to hijack her private jet and takes her back home to Crowley Corners, Tennessee for a couple of weeks to see if he can get her back to normal. When Miley makes her arrival to the small town she’s put in the rearview mirror, she’s forgotten about her beloved horse, Blue Jeans, or Travis (Lucas Till), the cute boy who she was best friends with while growing up. Also complicating her homecoming a snoopy tabloid reporter and the fact that Crowley Corners is under the threat of urbanification by a nasty developer (Barry Bostwick).

The plot is just one cliche after another. It starts with the forced-down-your-throat teenage romance. It continues with the stupid villains and wacky supporting characters. It doesn’t help things either that the only attempts at comedy are goofy slapstick and pratfalls. Did I mention that the film is bordering on being a musical? There is plenty of time for singing and dancing in this film, because Disney soundtrack has to sell, sell, sell.

Not everything presented in Hannah Montana: The Movie is awful, though. The shining star is Emily Osment as Miley’s best friend. Unfortunately, half of the film is devoted to the great onscreen chemistry between Cyrus and Osment. Still, with catchy songs that are easy listening, and a message that tries to instill the idea that you should never forget where you come from, the film is simply a nice diversion for those hardcore Hannah Montana fans who want to be entertained in the comfort of their own living room.

This DVD set contains both the Blu-ray and standard DVD version of this film. The video on the Blu-ray disc is presented in 1080p/AVC at the 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen color ratio, which is enhanced for 16:9 TVs of course. This transfer is great. Small details are clear and all the colors are crisp and vibrant.

The audio included on the Blu-ray disc is available in either English DTS-HD 7.1 Master Surround sound, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround sound, or French Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround sound. There are subtitles available in English, Spanish, and French as well. There are subtitles available in English, Spanish, and French as well. Both discs feature dialogue and music that come out loud and clear. As expected, the Blu-ray disc sounds a little better than the standard definition DVD.

Audio Commentary
There is a full-length audio commentary with the director, Peter Chelsom. He is very insightful, but not as entertaining. So only a must-listen for hardcore fans.

“Find Your Way Back Home” Featurette
This runs 15 minutes and in it Miley Cyrus offers a personal tour of her hometown, Franklin, TN. Miley and her mother Tish shop, sing, sign autographs, and pass along stories from the past. Emily Osment then takes over and takes you on a tour of Los Angeles, where I guess she is from. She eats hot dogs at Pink’s, visits the Santa Monica Pier, and learns some things at the La Brea Tar Pits.

“I Should Have Gone To Film School” Featurette
This runs 15 minutes and it follows Jason Earles around the set as he interviews cast and crew about making this film. Lots of good behind-the-scenes information here and Earles is just as funny off the set as on it.

“The Hoedown Throwdown Home Experience” Featurette
This runs 15 minutes and it’s all about the making of the infamous dance sequence from the film and how the cast was trained to pull off the complex moves. Then, it teaches viewers how to do the dance as well.

Deleted Scenes
There are 4 scenes that total 10 minutes that didn’t make the film. Some are funny, but nothing must-watch.

Outtakes
This is 4 minutes of the usual gags and mistakes from making this film. Again some funny stuff, but not entirely.

Music Videos
There are music videos for various songs from the film including two versions of “The Climb”, “You’ll Always Find Your Way Back Home,” and “Let’s Get Crazy” by Miley Cyrus, “Back to Tennessee” by Billy Ray Cyrus, “Crazier” by Taylor Swift,” and “Bless the Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts.

Fans of the show will want to purchase this release for sure. Improved video and sound over the standard DVD, and as a bonus get the DVD as well – perfect for those who have a DVD player in the car and need to keep the kids entertained on a road trip. Those not familiar with the Hannah Montana experience, rent it if you are curious what the fuss is about.





Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment presents Hannah Montana: The Movie. Directed by Peter Chelsom. Starring Miley Cyrus, Billy Ray Cyrus, Emily Osment, Jason Earles, Mitchel Musso, Margo Martindale, Peter Gunn, Melora Hardin, and Lucas Till. Written by Dan Berendsen (screenplay); Michael Poryes, Rich Correll, Barry O’Brien (characters). Running time: 103 minutes. Rated G. Released on DVD: August 18, 2009. Available at Amazon.com

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